


Angels Are Angels Are Vessels Are Broken

by orange_8_hands



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angels are Dicks, College, Episode: s04e20 The Rapture, Episode: s09e01 I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here, Episode: s09e06 Heaven Can't Wait, Gen, Podfic Available, Vessel Fic, Wordcount: 1.000-3.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-17
Updated: 2014-01-17
Packaged: 2018-01-09 01:24:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1139787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orange_8_hands/pseuds/orange_8_hands
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Claire is a <strike>vessel</strike> <strike>girl</strike> vessel, in three (increasingly shorter) parts</p>
            </blockquote>





	Angels Are Angels Are Vessels Are Broken

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the [tumblr prompt](http://oranges8hands.tumblr.com/post/73603208490/the-roots-that-clutch-what-if-hael-didnt-die) _what if Hael didn’t die and she found Claire to use as a vessel_ (by the-roots-that-clutch), though it's kind of only leading to that
> 
> TW: Vessel consent, child harm
> 
> ETA: Link to the awesome podfic by Shmaylor is at the end of the work.

**i. vessels are broken**

 

"Hey Claire," Laquisha says, leaning against the door frame. "Group of us are going to dinner if you want in."

Claire glances up from her laptop, flashes a smile. "Nah, I wanna finish this. Breakfast tomorrow though?"  
  
"Sure," she says, and heads down the hallway.  
  
Claire starts typing again.  
  
*******  
  
(There's a voice in her head and it keeps -)  
  
*******  
  
There is fifteen minutes left to the lecture. The girl beside her is playing a game with the sound off. The guy in front of her is almost finished knitting the scarf he started in their last class. Claire slides lower in her seat and checks her phone.  
  
Fourteen minutes.  
  
"...Dunn points out Rousseau actually admired Machiavelli, which is not a sentiment..."

Two rows down, someone watches the clip of the meteor shower on their laptop.

*******

She feels hands on her shoulders and her whole body wretches backwards, smacking into the wall. Her roommate jumps back, hands raised, and Claire is panting when Kim's voice finally cuts through -

"Claire, it's okay, you were dreaming, Claire, you're fine, come on."

Claire scrubs her hands over her face. "I'm sorry. I didn't...I'm sorry."

"Hey, hey now, it's okay." Kim smiles, even if she still looks freaked out. "Just a bad dream."

"Yeah."

Kim waits but Claire doesn't say anything else, and she finally goes back to her bed. The room has the edges of light peaking through, and as Kim falls back asleep Claire watches the morning invade their space, spreading out and marking time until her alarm clock sounds.

*******

There are no pictures of Jimmy in her dorm room.

*******

She finds a Roman Catholic Church on her mapquest, grabs the first bus that will take her close enough and walks the rest of the way. She's wearing slacks and a blouse, the same outfit she used on last week's job interview. She manages to scoop a water bottle full as she pauses by the baptismal font, trying not to wince over the droplets she leaves behind as she jams it into her bag.  
  
She makes the sign of the Holy Cross and moves into the back of the pews. The stained-glass window to the right is done as the icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, oranges and reds and blues, and Claire stares at it longer than she plans, longer than she wants to. It reminds her of Sunday school, the painted picture her teacher had on the wall by his desk, so when you looked at him you looked at the icon.

(There's a voice in her head and it keeps -)

Claire bows her head and pretends to pray. When she leaves, she manages to fill up her second water bottle without anyone noticing.

*******

"Ugh."

Claire drops her books onto the table before throwing herself in a seat. Considering the amount of them, it should rattle the table, but Laquisha's economics book alone is about the size and weight of a small boulder, and Claire doesn't even make it move when she grabs the table to pull herself closer.

Monica widens her eyes. "I can't believe you actually said the word 'ugh'. I've seen it written, but there you are, actually saying the word."

"Yeah well it's been an 'ugh' day."

"What happened?" Laquisha asks.

"Major research project for Latin. It's about angels actually."

 Grace looks up. "You know, I found this great book about Enochian at the swap meet last week, if you want to borrow it."

"Enochian?" Monica asks.

"Angel language," Claire says, and then, casually, "That would be awesome."

  
*******

"Mom," Claire says, trying to get her door open while juggling two cups of coffee, her purse, her laptop bag, and a box of laundry detergent she bought at the student store. "I'm good, promise, but I have to-"

Kim opens the door and grabs the coffees and laundry detergent just as the cell between her ear and shoulder starts to slip. "I gotta go, Mom, I'll call you next week, love you, bye."

She stumbles to her bed and drops everything on it, face planting into her comforter. "Never again, Miss Kimberly M. Lee."

"It was not that ba-"

"Never. Again."

Kim rolls her eyes and grabs her laundry basket. "You have issues, Claire, but thank you." She pauses. "When did you even go to the student store before this?"

Claire makes a noise. "Eh, awhile ago, I needed that thing." She rolls over enough to open one eye and look at Kim. "What's the M stand for anyway?"

*******

"That looks great," Claire says, gesturing to his shoulder. "It's new, right?"

Mark smiles. "Yeah, got it done last Friday."

"Oh yeah? In town?"

"Yeah, little place on fifth, by the used bookstore."

"Well, your artist did an excellent job."

"Yeah, Selena is awesome. Great pricing too."

*******

(There's a voice in her head and it keeps -)

*******

"I swear, I'm fine Mom."

 

 

**ii. angels are vessels**

 

"I know what he did to your father. To your family. You can make him pay."

*******

She finds another girl. She wears a blue and yellow dress and her hair in pigtails, and Hael comes across her in a park with her older brother. It's a sunny day, a small breeze blowing the leaves still hanging on the trees.

The brother falls to his knees clasping his ears but the other one stands upright, looking at the blue sky. "Yes," she says, and for a moment the light that fills the park seems brighter than the sun.

The brother is still sobbing. Hael turns and starts walking to the road.

*******

"You're going to say yes, Claire. I need you to say yes."

*******

This body is more difficult than the one before. People look at her and then around for a parent. She's too small to drive a car, and her legs are too short for walking distances, and no one will follow her directions when they pick her up when she hitchhikes.

"Where are your parents, sweetie?" a woman asks.

"My Father left us a long time ago," Hael says.

******

"He broke us all, Claire."

*******

Hael stands outside Claire's dorm house. When Claire exits the front door, she is laughing, and the sound of it catches abruptly when she sees Hael.

"Claire," Hael says. "I'm here to make a deal."

"Claire?" says Claire's companion.

"It's fine, this is just, this is my sister, she needs to speak to me in private. I'll -" Claire doesn't take her eyes off of Hael, but she brushes her hand against her companion. "It's fine, I'll meet up with you."

Her companion makes a questioning noise, but Claire and Hael are already heading to her room. Hael sweeps in and Claire locks the door behind her before turning and snarling.

"Whose body are you in?"

"That's not of import."

"Not of, not -" Claire makes a motion like she's going to step forward but stops herself. "How old is she?"

"This bothers you," Hael says, like she's reaching the conclusion to a hypothesis. "And yet you let it happen."

"Let it - how the fuck did I let this happen?"

"Say yes, Claire," and her eyes blaze, "Or I will take as many as I need and break them until you do."

*******

Kim enters the room and screams. There's a girl on Claire's bed, maybe seven, her eyes open and lifeless and -

 

 

**iii. angels are angels**

_  
("Listen, I'm – I'm begging you here. You do whatever you want with me, but my wife and daughter, they're just – they're not a part of this.")_

_"Do you hear him? He's willing to lay down his life for you and your mother. He's willing to die. But I can save him, Claire. Say yes and I can save him."_

_("Oh, Sam. It's easy to act chivalrous when your Wonder Girl powers aren't working, huh? Now for the punch line. Everybody dies.")_

_"Claire, say yes! Say yes and I can still save him!"_

 

A young blonde woman opens the gas station door just shy of 2am. There's something about her face that's familiar, but Castiel isn't sure why.  
  
He raises his hand in an awkward hello.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Podfic] Angels Are Angels Are Vessels Are Broken](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5042254) by [Shmaylor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shmaylor/pseuds/Shmaylor)




End file.
